What's Up @ HDRN Canada? The June edition of Data Points is out!

What's Up @ HDRN Canada?

HDR Alliance weighs in on Bill S-5

The Health Data Research Alliance has weighed in on Bill S-5: The Connected Care for Canadians Act, emerging as a leading voice on health data stewardship. Recommendations from the joint brief written by Alliance members were echoed in the final report of the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science & Technology.

HDRN Canada helps launch OHDSI chapter

HDRN Canada has joined forces with health data scientists across the country to launch the Canadian chapter of OHDSI, a global open-science collaboration focused on unlocking the value of health data through large-scale analytics and data harmonization using the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership Common Data Model.

No significant visuals. Text reads: Canada’s National Artificial Intelligence Strategy: AI for All. Logos for Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada and the Government of Canada are at top.

HDR Alliance members funded through AI Strategy

HDR Alliance members VITAL and CIHI have received $100M each in funding as part of the federal government's AI Strategy. CIHI will coordinate the collaborative creation of a federated Canadian Health Data Space for secure analysis of linked data, while VITAL will expand its hospital EMR data network to five more provinces.

Congratulations Dr. Lisa Lix

Congratulations to HDRN Canada Executive member Dr. Lisa Lix on receiving the 2025 Dr. John M. Bowman Memorial Winnipeg Rh Institute Foundation Award, recognizing her transformative career advancing the use of administrative data in research and pioneering use of machine learning to generate population-level insights.

Upcoming Events

Measuring Progress in Cultural Safety & Cultural Humility | JUNE 24 | Online

Explore how innovative approaches to measurement can advance equity and address systemic anti-Indigenous racism in this Saskatchewan Health Quality Council webinar. Real-world examples trace pathways for improving system measurement process, opportunities to co-design, Indigenous data sovereignty and how we can shift the role of measurement to be more relational, reflective and rooted in community-defined values.

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The Haunting of Long-Term Care JUNE 25 | Online

How did health care aides handle death and dying in long-term care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic? Dr. Kate Stelfox shares study findings as well as insights and strategies on best practices for knowledge translation in this Research In Progress session hosted by HDR Alliance member CANSPARK. Participants will also learn about joining studies with Dr. Stelfox as a co-investigator, collaborator or knowledge user.

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Eight headshots of smiling people Text reads: HDRN Canada represents at IPDLN 2026. Health Data Research Network Canada and 2026 IPDLN Conference logos are at bottom.

HDRN Canada represents at IPDLN 2026 JULY 13-16 | Rotterdam

HDRN Canada will be out in full force at the 2026 International Population Data Linkage Network Conference. Scientific Director Dr. Kim McGrail will be there, along with presenters from HDRN Canada's Data Services Team, Harmonized Data & Tools Team, IDEA Team and Indigenous Data Practices Team, presenting advancements in distributed analysis, harmonized data, machine learning for de-identifying health data and more!

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Accessing Data Services through HDRN Canada | JULY 30 | Online

Are you a health researcher interested in conducting research across multiple provinces or territories? Join Anne Hayes and Raquel Duchen for an interactive webinar on the power of multi-regional studies. Learn how federated analysis can expand research opportunities and discover how HDRN Canada supports researchers throughout the project lifecycle—from study protocol design and data access to the completion of multi-regional analyses.

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Publications

Universal contraceptive coverage reduces costs

Dr. Kim McGrail, HDRN Canada Scientific Director, co -authored a new paper, published in JAMA Health Forum, that found patients’ out-of-pocket costs were substantially reduced after implementation of a universal contraceptive coverage policy in British Columbia, underscoring the value of universal coverage mandates for contraceptives.

News from Across the Network

Why measuring health inequalities matters

Health equity means everyone has a fair chance to achieve their best possible health. To support researchers and health system advisors in measuring, analyzing and reporting on health inequalities, CIHI has released a new toolkit on how to use data disaggregated by factors like age, sex or gender, income and urban vs. rural location.

Social worker recruitment & retention in NB

Social workers support communities across New Brunswick, but the province has faced ongoing challenges in attracting and keeping enough workers to meet demand. A new study from DataNB used linked administrative data to assess what factors influence whether trained social workers enter the profession, stay in it, or leave.

Evaluating orthopaedic care in Saskatchewan

Health Research Data Platform-SK has approved a new research project to securely access linked data that would otherwise be difficult to capture across the province. The research will evaluate orthopaedic trauma surgery systems in Saskatoon and Regina by comparing wait times and operating room efficiency for common fracture surgeries.

No significant visuals. Text reads: A Toolkit to Guide Equity-Centred Community Engagement in Research. ICES, University of Toronto and SickKids logos are at bottom.

Canadian patient perspectives on health data sharing

Strengthening community engagement is essential to building a more inclusive and impactful health data ecosystem. To support this work, ICES has launched a Toolkit to Guide Equity‑Centred Community Engagement in Research, offering practical guidance for researchers looking to deepen their learning and engagement practices.

Long-term risk of living kidney donations

Data access has been granted for a new pan-Canadian study that will use more than 30 years of linked health administrative data to evaluate the risks of living kidney donation. The retrospective population-based cohort study will draw upon data from three provinces, including British Columbia through Population Data BC.

Digital health tools give providers more time for care

Statistics Canada's 2025 Survey on the Use of Digital Technologies by Health Care Providers reveals that almost all health care providers had access to a digital system in 2024, but insufficient technological integration limited their use of digital health systems to share patient information with providers outside of their main practice setting.